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October 2016

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Page 88 of 95

OCTOBER 2016
|
89 The Flats at Landmark Centre
RENDERING
COURTESY
MEIKLEJOHN
ARCHITECTS
INC.;
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
BLACK
FROG
PHOTOGRAPHY/COURTESY
ASC
PROPERTY
MANAGEMENT
LTD.
The Flats at Landmark Centre
by ANGELA ALTASS
T
he Flats at Landmark Centre is an
upscale, new rental development in
Kelowna, B.C., featuring bright and
attractive micro suites, studios, one- and
two-bedroom suites and townhomes.
"This is the first new addition to
our residential portfolio in over 20
years and we are very excited to offer
this quality rental in Kelowna. We
hope that it will provide the option
and opportunity for our Landmark
community to live and work within
walking distance of the city and become
inviting to those seeking a rental of high
quality and superior management,"
says Louise Pelletier, property manager,
ASC Property Management Ltd.
The Flats is a four-storey
building with brick features, a large
16,000-square-foot common deck
with a synthetic lawn, two large
pergolas with patio tables, rental
garden boxes, and common barbeques
and many other unexpected extras
that have become the standard for
ASC Property Management Ltd.
"Materials used in the project
include two-tone grey HardiePlank
siding, brick front facade, grey stucco
entrance, woodgrain HardiePlank
as features on the front facade,
wood beam pergolas and ecological
landscaping," says Pelletier.
The land use in the surrounding
neighbourhood is the most interesting
aspect of the project, says Jim
Meiklejohn, principal at Meiklejohn
Architects Inc. "The Landmark centre
is comprised of six office buildings
with over half-a-million square feet
of office space. It is developed in the
middle of what was once a single family
residential and low-rise commercial
neighbourhood," says Meiklejohn.
The 57,085-square-feet project
includes 44 micro 312-square-feet
suites as well as a mixture of studios,
one bedroom plus den, two bedroom,
two bedroom plus den and townhomes
with 90 rental suites in total.
"The building is sprinklered wood
frame over concrete parking; there
is parking for 82 in total, 63 of which
are in the parkade," says Meiklejohn.
"The vision was to create a building
that respects the development form
of the other residential buildings in
the neighbourhood. We looked to
create pedestrian friendly sidewalks
by wrapping an elevated concrete
parking structure with four townhouse
units and an outdoor amenity for
the building by use of a landscape
deck over the parkade. Other
decisions were primarily to keep the
building simple and affordable."
The palette of landscape materials
chosen for the site closely match
those of the surrounding townhome
developments and the office towers of
Landmark Centre, further establishing
a consistent vision in the evolving
community, says Robert Fershau,
manager, landscape architecture and
urban design at WSP/MMM Group Ltd.
"The landscape design of The
Flats at Landmark Centre follows a
similar approach that WSP/MMM
Group implements on all projects,"
says Fershau. "Our team of landscape
architects carefully reviewed the site to
identify any challenges and constraints
as well as any opportunities to highlight
key areas. A review of this particular site
led to the need to provide an intensive
riparian planting buffer along Ritchie
Brook, a channelized watercourse that
runs along the back of the property."
Utilizing native species and best
management practices, the project
will add richness and diversity to
the south edge of the project site
and provide esthetic value for those
utilizing the expansive rooftop
amenity deck, says Fershau.
The building is concrete and brick
masonry at the sidewalk level to
provide an interesting pedestrian
experience with HardiePlank siding
above, says Meiklejohn, who adds he
feels good about contributing to high-
density, ground-oriented affordable
housing stock for this area of Kelowna.
The building's cranked configuration
also added some complexity, particularly
with a concrete suspended level,
adds
Don Bergman, principal,
CWMM Consulting Engineers Ltd.
One of the main challenges of
the project was affordably dealing
with elevated parking structures,
says Meiklejohn. "Dealing with
underground parking is a challenge
throughout downtown Kelowna," notes
Meiklejohn. "The city is challenged
by poor soils, a high water table and
minimum elevations set by floodplain
elevations, making underground
parking impossible or cost prohibitive."
"The concrete parking structure
features an elevated concrete
slab for landscaping and a plaza.
Conventional footings were used
for foundations," says Bergman.
There were also some
challenges with traffic planning
and road design for the project
impacting the surrounding
neighbourhood, says Meiklejohn.
"The road networks in this part
of Kelowna were not designed to
anticipate the densities currently
being planned and constructed," says
Meiklejohn, adding that city planners
and council were also concerned that
the developer provide amenities for
or around the building to offset the
limited living areas of the micro suites.
Bergman adds that CWMM
Consulting Engineers is pleased to
have been involved with this project
and enjoyed the experience of working
with such a reputable developer as
Al Stober Construction Ltd.
A
LOCATION
1525 Dickson Avenue, Kelowna, B.C.
DEVELOPER/GENERAL CONTRACTOR
ASC Property Management Ltd.
ARCHITECT
Meiklejohn Architects Inc.
STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT
CWMM Consulting Engineers Ltd.
MECHANICAL CONSULTANT
S+A Falcon
ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT
CIMA
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
WSP/MMM Group Ltd.
TOTAL SIZE
57,085 square feet
TOTAL COST
Undisclosed